I got my RCBS swager a couple of days ago and tested it too. I tested using .223 brass by Lake City. I never used a Dillon swager so I didn't know how it was supposed to "feel" when it was properly swaged. I have been using a Hornady reamer in a screw gun while holding the case in my hand and really hated doing that whole process as I never thought I was square when reaming.
I followed RCBS's directions and they say to make sure the rod is about an 1/8 of an inch from the tip of the swager. Well, that is being really conservative as I had to screw the rod in closer because it was not deep enough. I did not want to bend or break the rod by being too close so I crept it in closer till I felt resistance while pulling the cam handle near the end of the stroke. At one point I had it where I could not even pull the cam handle to the end of the stroke and it felt stuck so I backed the rod off. I examined the cases under a magnifying glass and I think I have a good setting as the outer edge of the primer pocket seems to resemble what a reaming would do but it is more even and seems uniform on the edge.
I have not tested seating a primer yet so I will get back to this thread as well and update my findings. I think the important thing to know when using this tool is sort of like how people prime the brass and talk of the feeling a primer being seated. I think I would need to know how the tool feels when swaging to understand if it is being swaged. The tool is said to use less force than other tools (Dillon probably), yet, I think some force need to be felt or else how to do you know if you are doing anything at all? Let me know what you all think.
Also, I don't believe in adjusting the rod up to compensate for "sag" of the case when it is riding on the rod. It is no big deal guiding the case with your fingers to the swager. Wouldn't you be making the rod and swager not square to one another if you compensated for this "sag"?